1985 San Marino Grand Prix
5 May |number = 407 |officialname = V Gran Premio di San Marino |circuit = Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Autodromo Dino Ferrari |location = Imola, Emilia-Romagna, Italy |circuittype = Permanent Racing Facility |lapdistance = 5.040 |laps = 60 |distance = 302.400 |pole = Ayrton Senna |polenation = BRA |poleteam = |poletime = 1:27.327 |fastestlap = 1:30.961 |fastestlapdriver = Michele Alboreto |fastestlapnation = ITA |fastestlapteam = |fastestlapnumber = 29 |winner = Elio de Angelis |winnernation = ITA |winnerteam = |second = Thierry Boutsen |secondnation = BEL |secondteam = |third = Patrick Tambay |thirdnation = FRA |thirdteam = }} The 1985 San Marino Grand Prix, formally known as the V Gran Premio di San Marino, was the third race of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Autodromo Dino Ferrari on the 5 May 1985.'San Marino GP, 1985', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr407.html, (Accessed 22/03/2019) The sixth Grand Prix to be hosted at the Imola circuit would see Alain Prost cross the line first, only to be disqualified after the race for being just 2kg underweight. Portuguese Grand Prix winner Ayrton Senna claimed pole position during qualifying, sharing the front row with Keke Rosberg. Prost, meanwhile, would line-up in sixth behind Elio de Angelis, Championship leader Michele Alboreto, and Thierry Boutsen, while defending World Champion Niki Lauda would start from eighth. The start itself would see the two black-gold Loti sprint into the lead, Senna ahead of de Angelis. Alboreto and Prost also made strong starts to claim third and fourth, while Rosberg was dumped to fifth as his was sluggish off the line. The order remained fairly stable at the head of the field during the early stages, the only significant change coming when Rosberg dropped behind Lauda. In contrast it appeared to be a battle of attrition in the midfield, with quick-fire mechanical retirements eliminating a quarter of the field before the end of lap eleven. Indeed, it was only on lap eleven that the picture at the front of the field truly changed, for de Angelis suddenly lost pace and fell off the back of teammate Senna. He subsequently fell behind Alboreto, Prost and Lauda, before Alboreto's expired with an electrical failure. That left the two s clear to attack Senna, with the red-white cars ominously weaving around in the 's mirrors. That was, until Lauda's electronics went haywire, send the Austrian into a spin and releasing Prost to attack Senna without threat from behind. Yet, Prost would never manage to get ahead of Senna on track, and hence was left vulnerable to Stefan Johansson in the #28 Ferrari when the Swede passed de Angelis. Indeed, Johansson would go on to pass the Frenchman in the closing stages, before inheriting the lead from Senna with two laps to go as the Brazilian ran out of fuel. Alas, just as the tifosi began cheering at the sight of the #28 Ferrari in the lead, Johansson's engine drained the last of its fuel, handing the lead to Prost barely half a lap on from claiming the lead. The Frenchman duly crawled home to claim victory, passing the chequered flag just as he ran out of fuel, with de Angelis and Boutsen completing the podium. There was to be one final twist, however, with Prost's McLaren-TAG Porsche failing post-race scrutineering for being underweight by 2kg. He was therefore disqualified, pending an appeal, with de Angelis inheriting the win from Boutsen and Patrick Tambay. Background After two second places in the opening two races it was Michele Alboreto who had emerged at the head of the Championship at the end of the visit to Portugal, the Italian having established a three point lead. Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna were next, having taken a win apiece in the first two rounds, but with the Frenchman positioned ahead despite being level on nine points. Fourth, meanwhile, would be occupied by Elio de Angelis, with nine drivers on the score board arriving in "San Marino". In the Constructors' Championship it was who appeared at the head of the field arriving in Imola, the Ethel team having claimed sixteen points in the first two races. were their closest challengers in second, a point behind, while were still in single figures in third. Elsewhere, were in fourth ahead of , while and had a point apiece ahead of the third race of the campaign. Entry List The full entry list for the is outlined below: Practice Overview Qualifying Friday Qualifying Saturday Qualifying Qualifying Results The full qualifying results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session. *'Bold' indicates a driver's best/qualifying time. Grid * * Jonathan Palmer did not start the race due an engine failure. Race Report Post-race Results The full results for the are outlined below: *T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car. ** Johansson, Senna and Piquet were all still classified despite retiring as they had completed 90% of the race distance. *† Prost was disqualified after his car was found to be 2kg underweight. *‡ Ghinzani was unable to be classified as he failed to complete 90% of the race distance. *ƒ Palmer was unable to start after an engine failure. Milestones * Debut race for as an engine manufacturer.'1985 San Marino GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=1985&gp=San%20Marino%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 22/03/2019) * 50th entry for Manfred Winkelhock. * Elio de Angelis claimed his second and final victory.'3. San Marino 1985', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1985/saint-marin.aspx, (Accessed 22/03/2019) * secured their 74th victory as a constructor. ** Engine suppliers earned their seventeenth win. * Thierry Boutsen claimed his maiden podium finish. * Patrick Tambay made his eleventh and final podium finish. * Michele Alboreto recorded the 100th fastest lap set by a engine and chassis. * Jacques Laffite set a new record for career retirements (75). Standings Elio de Angelis moved to the top of the Championship after inheriting victory, moving four clear of Michele Alboreto in second. Indeed, the Italian ace had lost the lead to his compatriot on home soil, with both looking like title contenders in the opening stages of the season. Alain Prost, meanwhile, would slip to fifth after having the victory taken from him, even slipping behind Ayrton Senna on count-back. In the Constructors' Championship it was who remained at the head of the pack, having won their second race of the season. were still second, left to rue the fact that Stefan Johansson had run-out of fuel late on, while were down in third. and completed the top five, with eight different constructors on the board after three races. Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown. References Images and Videos: * References: Category:Grand Prix articles Category:Grand Prix articles Category:1985 Grands Prix Category:San Marino Grand Prix Category:Formula One races in Italy